15 April 2009
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100th ANNIVERSARY 15 April 2009 |
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| One Hundred Years out of England
-- April 15th, 2009 marked the
100th anniversary of the arrival of some of my ancestors in Canada. A
party of four consisting of Polly Elizabeth Melbourne, her teenage
children Leonard and Elsie, and Leonard's friend Frank Scott left
Thames-Ditton, Surrey, travelled to Liverpool and embarked on the
Canadian Pacific liner The Empress of Britain on Good Friday, 9 April
1909. The ship (probably) arrived on April 15, 1909. Read about the
trip! Polly was traveling to join her husband Edward who had acquired an 'estate' at Pine Creek in the new Canadian province of Alberta. Pine Creek was subsequently renamed Waskatenau. |
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| The Melbourne Family at Ye Olde Harrow,
Thames Ditton, circa 1900: Polly Elizabeth, Edward, unknown, Leonard, Elsie, unknown |
| In time Frank would marry Elsie.
They would stay in Waskatenau and
raise a family there. The family farms are still farmed by their
descendants. Leonard returned to England during WWI as part of the Canadian Army. When he returned to Canada after WWI, he did not return to farming and eventually settled in British Columbia where he married and raised his family. The family of descendants of Edward and Polly now has over 100 members. These people live predominantly in Canada but also include people who reside in the United States, Panama and Portugal If you are a family member and have not communicated with me I invite you to contact me by email: ken at kenscott dot com I hope you will take time to read this story of emigration -- a story that is significant to all family members -- and reflect on the qualities of our ancestors who made this voyage as well as on the impact that it has had on our lives. I encourage you also to contact me with corrections or additions to the story. I am also interested in knowing of any items that you might have that remain from this initial trip, as well as photographs of those early days. Kenneth Scott Dunedin, Florida |